We Were Born To Die
by BLEACHstardust
Summary: Alice and Tate have been best friends for as long as they can remember. Alice seems to be the only one who truly doesn't believe that her best friend is a bad person.  Tate/Oc
1. If I Die Young

Alice was sitting in the back of her English class, writing away in her notebook. It was one of the few times she had a quiet moment just to focus on her stories of magic and fantasy. She was finished with her work for the day, so while the rest of the class talked and pretended to do something productive, she sat in the corner of the room, lost in her own world. It was the gunshots from somewhere in the school that snapped her out of it, along with the rest of her classmates who, she noticed, were now looking around in horror. All it took was a few sounds and the classroom was in an instant panic. The teacher, Ms. Patch, was struggling to try and quiet the students while they grouped in the middle of the room, hugging their friends and staring at the door. Alice knew from the atmosphere and the genuine reaction from Ms. Patch that this was not a test, that there was actually someone walking through the school, most likely killing whoever they came across. She closed her notebook and slid under her desk like the teacher was trying to get the others to do just as the woman switched off the lights. She noticed, from her spot on the floor, that a few others had decided it was probably wisest not to be seen and were in various spots. She pulled her hood over her head before tugging her sweater around her tighter as she tried to calm herself down. Maybe no one was hurt, no one would get hurt. The police would come and take whoever it was away. That would be that. The door creaked as someone opened it and the blonde took a breath in, biting her lower lip and closing her eyes tightly.

Her eyes opened only moments later, staring at the person that now stood just inside the door, gun pointed at one of the few students who had decided not to bother to hide. She imagined that the boy regretted it now, but as she thought that, her attention turned back to the shooter. At a second glance, she recognized him immediately, but it couldn't possibly be him. Tate Langdon was her best friend, he would never do something like this, or she would have at least known about it. She saw the look in his eyes, even in the darkness of the room and it terrified her more than she ever thought was possible. She wanted desperately to get out from her hiding spot and try to stop her friend but she couldn't. She was frozen in her spot, only able to squeeze her eyes shut as he pulled the trigger. She heard him move around the class along with several more gunshots and then there was silence. An eerie, terrifying silence that made her wonder if she was dead too. Her best friend was a killer and she didn't even try to stop him when she so easily could have. If he were going to listen to anyone in the building, it would have been her, not the teachers or the police that surely surrounded the school. She might have been able to stop innocent people from dying and she didn't do anything.

It felt like hours before she opened her eyes again at the sound of what she only guessed were police officers entering the room. She had no idea how long it had actually been, but as soon as she looked around the room, she wished she hadn't. She closed her eyes again as one of the men walked through the room, looking for anyone who might be injured. There were a few who had been shot and were still alive. The police helped them out and returned, speaking to Ms. Patch, who had gone uninjured. Moments later, Alice heard someone talking near her in a soft tone and it didn't register immediately that he was speaking to her. She opened her eyes again, avoiding the rest of the room and looked at the man in the uniform kneeling in front of her. So she wasn't dead, but she wished she were. The man, whom introduced himself as Officer Sloof, helped her out from under the desk, asking her questions and attempting to get her to speak as he led her out of the school. The amount of things going on outside was overwhelming, with news reporters asking anyone they could question and paramedics helping those who got hurt. What got her the most were the groups of friends, hugging and crying with each other, or the parents with their children. She was surprised when someone wrapped her in a hug and she saw her father standing behind the woman. It was far from comforting though, as she realized the only person she actually wanted to see was the one person who caused this. She wondered why she didn't die, why he didn't shoot her. It would be better than this. When her mother released her from the hug, the two led her away from the scene, but not before she heard a news reporter mention that there was a swat team at the Langdon household, looking for the teen shooter.

Alice sat in her living room while her parents argued in the kitchen about something. She wasn't necessarily paying attention, too lost in her thoughts about what she was supposed to do from there. Her best friend was dead. It had been reported on the news earlier that Tate Langdon had attempted to pull a gun on the swat team and they had no choice but to shoot him before he could shoot them. In a mere couple of hours, her life had completely fallen apart. Surprisingly, her parents seemed understanding about the entire situation, but she knew they were considering sending her to some sort of therapist or counsellor to help her 'deal with the traumatic experience'. She hadn't spoken to anyone since the shooting, unable to find any words to say to answer any of the questions but it wasn't as if she really wanted to say anything. She pulled the blanket that was wrapped around her shoulders tighter, closing her eyes and ignoring the angry shouts from the kitchen.

It had been a week. A week of being locked in her bedroom and refusing to speak to anyone. It only took a couple days before her parents stopped trying to talk to her or get her to eat when she refused. Alice sat in her bed, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders as she flipped through an old photo album of her and Tate. Over the week, she had gone through different stages of emotions for her deceased friend. At first, she had been terrified that he could do such a thing, naturally, but over time that had disappeared into being angry at him, to eventually just blaming herself. If she had been a better friend, she would have known what he was planning, she would have been able to stop him, but she hadn't. Even in the classroom, she could have somehow got the gun away from him, or tried to, and those kids wouldn't have died. She tugged the sleeves of her cardigan over her hands, feeling the material rub again the fresh cuts along her arms and wincing. She still couldn't understand why Tate would do something like that, or why he would purposely get himself killed. She pulled her legs up to her chest, her arms lying on top of her knees as she put her head down.

Alice stood in front of the house that up until a few days ago belonged to Larry Harvey and Constance Langdon. It wasn't surprising to her that Constance would move her family out of the house where such a tragedy took place, but she wished she knew where they moved to. She sighed softly, pulling her knit cardigan tighter around her body in an attempt to block out the chill she felt. The house had always had an uneasy vibe about it, but it just seemed sinister now. Briefly, staring at the empty house, she wondered what exactly happened when one died in the house. She remembered meeting one woman, who claimed to be trapped in the house, and wondered if it was the same case for Tate. Was it possible for her to see her friend again? Another thought intruded, reminding her of what he had done. Tate had killed fifteen kids, just like them. She had to ask herself what would stop him from killing her too if he was still around in the house. A shiver ran down her spine as Alice turned away from the house, disturbed by her thoughts, and made her way home.


	2. Born To Die

_If Tate were here, he would actually be trying to help. _The thought struck her that morning as she listened to her parents arguing over what should be done with her. It had only been a week since she started seeing the psychiatrist, and already they were fed up with having to pay for extra things because of their daughter. Alice still hadn't spoken a word to anyone besides the woman she had seen twice, and even then she hadn't said much. There was little that could be done to help her, she knew that. Even the pills that the psychiatrist had prescribed didn't do very much to help. The orange bottle was now located in the bag hanging from Alice's shoulder as she stared at the house in front of her. The more she thought about her life and the choice she was about to make, the more certain she was that it was the right thing to do. No matter what anyone said, the only one who had actually cared about her wellbeing had been Tate. Without him, everyone just seemed to have given up on her. As terrified as she was of her friend, she would rather face him than to go through another day in the Hell that had become her life.

She stepped inside the house before shutting the door behind her, surprised that it had been that easy to get in. The front door had been locked, as Alice had expected, but the kitchen door was unlocked. Being in the empty house, she was haunted with memories, things that would never happen again. She remember the days where she helped Constance cook supper because Tate hadn't come home by the time she got there, or the nights Tate somehow convinced her to watch horror films with him. She bit her bottom lip as she made her way through the kitchen and up the stairs, blinking away the tears in her eyes. By the time she reached the door to Tate's old room, her hands were shaking as she fumbled with the doorknob, feeling like it was necessary to at least visit this room one last time. She sat on the floor, her back against the wall as she looked around the room that she used to be so familiar with but now seemed so foreign.

"I'm so sorry," Alice whispered to the room, pulling her legs to her chest. "I'm sorry I wasn't a better friend; that I wasn't there for you when you so obviously needed someone." Her voice caught in her throat as she tried to say his name, wondering if he was even there to listen. She knew there were some ghosts in the house, but it was a guess as it if Tate would be one of them. Half of her hoped that he wasn't, just so that he wouldn't see her like this. "I don't blame you for what happened… I just – I miss you so badly, Tate. You were… You were the only thing in this world that I had and I can't do this alone. I can't wake up every morning and know that I'm alone." She let out a choked sob, resting her forehead on her knees. "I can't do this without you, Tate. I-I've tried and I can't."

It was hours before she left Tate's room. She realized, as she sat, that it didn't matter how scared she was of him. Tate Langdon was her best friend and she loved him no matter what. She just wanted him back, somehow. She didn't want to exist in the world if she didn't have her best friend, and she was determined, now more than ever, that she wasn't going to. Here, there could be two outcomes, that were both better than how she was going day to day. She would either simply die and fade away in the world, or she would die and become another member of the house, like she had been told would happen by Nora. She felt a pang of guilt, wondering what the woman must have thought of everything going on. She stood from her spot on the floor, shaking slightly. As she lifted her bag, she could hear the pills rattle in their bottle at the bottom of the bag and bit her lower lip. As confident as she may have thought she was, the thought of death was still horrifying to her.

Alice made her way to the stairs, pausing before she took a step down. She had decided that taking the pills in the living seemed the best place, but it was daunting to walk down the stairs in front of her. She shivered, feeling suddenly uneasy in the house she used to love being in and wrapped her arms around herself in a tight hug. As she took the first step down, she felt strong hands on her shoulders, shoving her forward with terrifying strength. It only took moments before her neck made contact with the wooden stairs, not enough time for her to realize what was going to happen. Everything went black as soon as her neck snapped.

Standing at the top of the stairs, Alice shivered, pulling her cardigan around her tighter as she stared over the railing at the crumpled body on the floor. It seemed like one of those things that you couldn't deny because the truth was staring you in the face. She took a shaky breath and turned away from the sight that could only be her body. She couldn't remember what had actually happened, just the firm hands on her shoulders as she took the first step down the stairs. It was easy to guess what had happened next, but why? She couldn't figure out why someone would want her dead. Brushing strands of hair out of her face, she sank to the floor as a woman walked toward her.

"What are you doing here?" Alice knew the woman immediately, recognizing her not only from pictures she had seen, but from meeting her once or twice throughout her time in the house. Nora seemed frightened at the sight of her, which ended up making Alice feel even more afraid of what happened next. "You really shouldn't be here…" On a second look at the tiny girl sitting on the ground, realization struck her and the blonde woman's expression softened. "You can't leave, can you, darling?"  
>Alice shook her head weakly, looking at the floor by her feet, nervous about the woman's reaction. To her surprise, Nora sat down beside her, smoothing her skirt as she did so and looked at Alice with concern. "What happened?"<br>"I think… I got pushed, I think, down the stairs." She mumbled quietly, chewing on her lower lip. She had decided that no one needed to know she was planning on killing herself, especially not Nora. The woman would probably be devastated to know she had been thinking such terrible thoughts.  
>"I'm sorry, dear." Nora responded quietly, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind the teenager's ear. Alice resisted asking the woman about Tate, not wanting to bring up what he did quite yet. She continued biting her lip as she looked up at the woman, noticing the sad expression across her features. "You were so young, with so much life left in you. You don't deserve to be in such a place full of sadness and sorrow." Alice noticed the woman look down with a subtle pause, "Neither you, nor Tate, deserve to be here…"<p> 


	3. Bittersweet

Curled up on a window seat in one of the mostly forgotten bedrooms in the house, the petite girl gazed down at the street below with slight interest. It had only been five days since her 'accident' that left to her being trapped in the house and she still felt uncomfortable walking through the house that was supposed to be empty. Sitting in the room, she felt slightly better, at least. Part of her wanted to explore the house in a search for Tate, but at the same she was still afraid of what the boy would be capable of. She bit her lip at the thought. If she had been honest with herself the day she died, she should have expected this more. She had almost been sure that she would just die, nothing more, nothing less. Now she was here, and was beginning to understand that this might be worse than just death. Hearing the door open behind her, Alice kept her eyes focused on the street below.  
>"Fuck. Alice?" The voice made the girl turn her head, her eyes wide with surprise. It was moments before she had stood, running over to the boy who stood, bewildered, just inside the door. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she felt tears stinging in her eyes. The fear she had felt of her friend seemed to have vanished at the sight of him.<br>"Why? Why did you leave me alone?" Her voice was barely a whisper and she was barely aware of arms wrapping around her.  
>"I don't even know what happened. I wish I could give you some sort of answer but I have no fucking idea why I'm here." She felt his breath in her hair and instead of being confused, she felt relieved that Tate didn't remember what happened. Perhaps he simply wasn't himself that day. She had always known there was something terrible in this house. Had it somehow been able to influence his actions? Her thoughts were cut short as Tate suddenly pulled away, holding her away from him at arms' length as he looked at her with sudden fear. "Alice, you shouldn't be here. This house is full of darkness. It's Hell. It's not safe for you to be here."<br>Alice stared at him for a moment as the realization hit her. _He didn't know._ "I'm so sorry, Tate." She whispered, her voice shaking as she tried to blink away the tears that seemed persistent. At her apology, the boy's expression changed, displaying the confusion he felt. The blonde bit her lower lip, "I – I can't leave…" She knew there was a chance that he wouldn't understand what she meant. He could think that she simply thought she couldn't because she didn't want to leave him, but Tate was smarter than that. She hoped, anyways. She couldn't bear to say that she was dead, not out loud, not to Tate.  
>"What do you mean you can't leave? You have t-" His final word caught in his throat as he figured out what she meant by those three simple words. There was only one way you couldn't leave this house. "No. Alice, you can't be. You're so innocent and pure. You can't fucking be here. This place… It's full of darkness and fucked up people. You're not bad, you shouldn't be here."<br>"I'm sorry, Tate. I'm so sorry." She took a shaky breath, trying to keep herself from breaking down on the spot as she looked down at her feet. She couldn't bear to see Tate looking so upset, knowing she was the cause and there was nothing she could do to fix it. She realized she was shaking, even slightly, and knew it wasn't from the ever present chill she felt since she died. "I – I missed you… Some part of me thought that coming here would fix that… It was stupid, I know… I… Someone pushed me…" By the time she was finished, she was crying and nothing she could do would stop it. Tate pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her in a protective hug. "I'm sorry, Tate."

Alice wasn't sure how, but somehow, she had ended up curled up in Tate's arms as they lay on the bed that, for whatever reason, still furnished the room. It reminded her of the nights she had spent at the Langdon household when she had been too upset to sleep on her own or too scared from whatever movie Tate had shown her. It had always simply been a friendly gesture, but she had always hoped there would be more to it one day. She had been able to stop crying as Tate pulled himself together as well, trying to make it seem like he hadn't been crying. The entire situation made her feel terrible. She had failed him as a friend and here he was, comforting her. If she had only helped him, when he clearly needed it, then maybe, they wouldn't be there.

Shifting her head, Alice looked up at the boy, his messy blonde curls falling over his face. "Tate, what do we do now?" Her voice was soft, afraid to break the silence that had settled over the two teenagers. Tate opened his eyes, looking at her as he considered his reply.  
>"What we've always done, I guess." Tate replied, lifting his head for a moment and shaking the hair out of his face before resting it back on the pillow. "Play Scrabble and watch movies or whatever the fuck there is to do around here. It's you and me, together forever, just like we always said."<br>The blonde nodded her head, resting her forehead against his chest once more as she thought about the simple answer. There was something sad about the way he spoke. _Together forever. _In a normal situation, it would have been such a lovely phrase, but here, it was only a reminder that they were trapped in the house for eternity. She could tell just how miserable Tate was with the thought, but not for the reason one would think. Alice knew her friend never thought highly of himself. He wouldn't be quite so miserable if it was just him subject to this fate, but knowing that she had to suffer as well was what did it. She remembered a day where Constance had told her that she had never seen Tate care for someone other than Addie as much as he cared for her. As far as she knew, the boy probably thought he deserved this fate, even if he didn't remember what he did.  
>"You shouldn't be here. It's not fair." Tate's voice pulled her out of her thoughts and she moved her head again to look at him but he was staring towards the window, clearly lost in his own thoughts. "You could have done so much with your life, done something fucking great. Now you can't 'cause you're trapped in this shithole. It's not right."<br>"Tate, I wouldn't have been able to do anything." Alice said softly, biting her lower lip. "I was never very strong, and as soon as I lost you, nothing seemed worth doing anymore. I couldn't do it without you." She felt him pull her closer to him and nuzzled his chest lightly, closing her eyes. "Things will get better, they have to. If I learned anything in my life, it was that things can't stay horrible forever. It has to get better eventually."  
>"I hope you're right." Despite how he tried to keep the statement light, Alice knew that the odds were he didn't believe things would ever get better, not in their situation.<p> 


	4. Breaking at the Seams

Alice was sitting on the roof with Tate, something they had gotten into a habit of doing during the nights where there was little happening or they just felt the need to get away from everyone. She never came out there on her own, of course, her fear of heights following her into death as she found out the first night they had decided to explore the roof. The petite blonde was sitting, staring at the stars that glittered in the night sky as Tate was lying down beside her, his arms behind his head and his eyes closed. There something peaceful about being away from everyone else in the house, even just for the moment. After fifteen years, it felt difficult to hold on to any sanity being trapped in the house. Halloween was really the only day they had where they could act like normal people, able to come and go from the house as they liked. She dreaded the day when someone else found their little getaway. She hadn't told anyone where she disappeared to, letting even her friend Caroline believe it was to the attic.

"Alice…" The sudden break in the silence startled Alice as she turned to look at the boy who was now sitting up and looking at her with a blank expression. She blinked, biting her lower lip.  
>"W-what?" She managed to ask, suddenly nervous around her best friend when she had been so comfortable just moments before. "Have… Have I done something wrong?"<br>Tate shifted, realizing just how much he hated seeing the blonde so upset. He bit the inside of his cheek nervously, knowing he needed to do this. Fifteen years of not knowing had been long enough and not that he was aware of what he had done, he couldn't let her go on so oblivious. "You haven't done anything wrong, Alice, that's the problem." The words didn't seem to want to come to him, but he had to do this. He couldn't back down now. "I… There's something you need to know. I fucked up. I did something really fucking bad and you're going to hate me."  
>Her stomach knotted from anxiety, of fear, she really wasn't sure. The minute Tate had started speaking though; Alice knew that whatever it was she probably didn't want to know. She wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly aware that she had started shaking slightly and watched the boy who looked like he was battling with himself over something important.<br>"I'm the one who killed you, Alice." Her eyes widened at the words, stunned by the short sentence that had come from her best friend. Tate had tilted his head down, closing his eyes, probably to avoid having to see the pain he knew he would cause. "I was the one who pushed you down the stairs. I thought I would have to spend eternity alone and… and I couldn't fucking bear that. It was a fucking selfish thing to do and I don't blame you if you never forgive me. I don't deserve your forgiveness or your friendship." He opened his eyes again, looking at the tiny girl sitting in front of him, "You're so amazing. You could have done something amazing with your life and I took that away. You don't know how fucking sorry I am."

_I'm the one who killed you. _It felt like she couldn't breathe, as if she had been punched in the stomach and had gotten the air knocked out of her. The words repeated in her head, but that couldn't be true. Tate was her best friend; he had protected her for years against everything that tried to hurt her. This couldn't be right, he couldn't have been the one who killed her all those years ago, who stopped her from doing it herself, could he? She could tell that she was shaking more than before, and she bit her lip hard to try and keep herself from crying. She should hate him, if it were true, she knew that, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She loved him, even now, and that was the most terrifying part of the situation.  
>"I was going to kill myself." The blonde's voice shook as she spoke, looking down at her hands as she tugged her sleeves over her hands nervously. She hadn't been able to say the words to anyone for fifteen years, but she was scared to tell Tate, out of anyone. He had tried so hard to protect her when they were alive that he would hate to know it all disappeared when he died. "W-when I came back here that day, I wasn't going to leave. I couldn't do it without you, Tate; I couldn't wake up every morning knowing I was alone. I was determined to die, I suppose you just… you just saved me the t-trouble."<p>

Although she was looking down, Alice could feel the boy's dark eyes focused on her and she could tell that he was angry. She looked at Tate through her hair as she shook his head vigorously, clearly refusing to believe what she said. "Don't say that. I fucking killed you, Alice. You can't forgive me for that." She heard him breathe in and exhaled, realizing she had been holding her breath. "You're a fucking idiot if you forgive me for what I did. I'm a monster. I deserve to be miserable and hated for as long as I fucking exist. You _need_ to hate me."  
>Alice blinked, shocked at his sudden anger towards her. She didn't think he would be mad at her about it, but that was what it seemed like. "Tate-"<br>"No, I deserve to be alone and that's what I'm going to fucking get."  
>Just like that, Tate was standing and walking away from her, but Alice couldn't move from where she was sitting to stop him. She hugged her legs to her chest tightly, her cheek resting against her knee. This couldn't be it. After so many years of being there for each other, this couldn't be the end of it all. He would come back, apologize or something. He had to, but part of her knew that he wouldn't this time. She had seen the look in his eyes, how determined he was to be hated, even by her. She felt ill as she thought about how the entire situation was her fault. Tate wouldn't be in the house at all, trapped and miserable, if she was a better friend while they were alive. She shouldn't have gone upstairs and wasted time when she came back that day. She closed her eyes, letting out a silent sob. Tate blamed himself for all of it, but she was to blame. If she had tried harder, they might have been able to live normal lives. None of that mattered now, though. Her best friend was gone, probably for good. The one person she trusted no matter what, the one person she loved more than anyone else. It was worse than knowing he was dead. Now he had purposely left her alone. He was trapped in the same Hell as she was, and he was probably going to simply avoid her for as long as they existed. At least before she had death to try and escape. Now she had nothing. That was the worst part about being trapped in the house, she was beginning to realize, no happiness was possible and there was no way to escape the misery that surrounded you...<p> 


	5. Please Don't Leave Me

"Tate…" Alice stood at the bottom of the basement stairs, her hands trembling as she looked around nervously. The eerie feeling she always got when she walked down those stairs gave her chills, but she couldn't run away from it now. She had to find Tate, perhaps make him understand that she wasn't going to hate him, even if he vanished like this. She shivered, tugging her sleeves over her hands and took a step away from the stairs, keeping as close to the wall as she could. "Tate, please, I just… I need to talk to you." She couldn't keep the desperation out of her voice. It had been a month already without him, or around that at least, and it was getting difficult to pretend everything was fine.

A figure stepped out of the shadows after a moment, startling the tiny blonde girl for a moment before she recognized who it was. He was watching her, not saying anything, and it made her nervous. She ran her hand through her messy hair, suddenly aware of what a mess she must look like. She shook the thought off and said his name quietly, almost like an experiment to see if he disappeared as soon as she spoke. When he didn't, she continued. "I – I can't hate you. I don't think you're a monster. Nothing will change that, Tate."  
>"Why can't you just fucking understand? I <em>am<em> a monster. I killed fifteen kids that were just like us, Alice. I killed _you_. You need to hate me because that's all I fucking deserve. I deserve to be hated and miserable and alone just like every other monster. I've done so many horrible fucking things that I need to suffer for. You're the complete opposite of me, Alice. You're pure and you're kind and you deserve happiness. I'm the darkness, I'll only ruin you."  
>"Shut up." Alice was looking down, fighting off the urge to cry. At her words, Tate's fists unclenched as he stared at her in shock. She had never told anyone to shut up before, and even if she had, it would have been in some polite form. She bit her lip, looking up at the boy. "How am I supposed to believe you're such a monster when all you've ever done is save me? Even if I wanted to, I would never be able to hate you, because you can't <em>truly<em> hate your best friend. I tried. When… when you killed those kids and left me alone, I tried to hate you, I really did. I just ended up missing you more because you're all I've ever had…" Her voice shook as she finished, a tiny sob escaping her lips. She rubbed her eyes with the ends of her sleeves. "Even if you were all the awful things you say you are I would never hate you because…" She paused, biting her lip. "Because you're my best friend, Tate, and I don't want to lose you."

Tate blinked, trying to clear the tears in his eyes with little success. He had trouble believing anyone would fight this hard to keep him around. It was also strange to think that someone as pure as Alice was this scared of losing him. He hated the small voice in his head that kept repeating that he would only hurt her more if he continued the friendship, but she needed him now. The thought of someone needing him was terrifying, but he knew somewhere in his mind that she had always needed him. In a way, they needed each other, because otherwise, they would have been so much more fucked. At least with their fucked up friendship, they weren't alone. He walked forward and gathered the petite girl in a hug. She deserved happiness more than anyone in this fucking house and if he could bring her that, then so be it. "It's never going to be easy to be associated with me, Alice." He whispered, resting his cheek on the top of her head as she clung to the front of his shirt.  
>"I – I don't care." She replied just as quietly, sniffling as she spoke. "I can… I can handle it." It was a relief to know that he didn't hate her, and that he somehow managed to get over his anger with her for not hating him. As much as she had wanted something more with Tate when they were alive, she had come to realize that the only thing she would ever get from him was friendship, and she had accepted that. As long as they were still close in some way. "I just… I can't lose you again…"<br>"You aren't going to lose me, Alice. You're never going to lose me." The words felt strange on Tate's tongue and if he were talking to anyone else, he never would have said anything like that. Alice was different though, she always had been. She was almost like his own angel or some shit like that. He must have done something right to have her.  
>"Y-you better mean that." Alice's voice still shook, but she had managed to stop crying. She still held on to the fabric of his shirt gently though, afraid if she let go he would disappear into the darkness that infested the basement. "I – I can't… I don't know what to do without you, Tate…" She released his shirt, tugging her sleeves over her hands and wrapping her arms around his waist. Tate's arms around her tightened, holding his friend close.<br>"Trust me, I mean it." He whispered the words, looking down at the tiny girl in his arms. How much easier it would have been if he had never been told what he did to get shot by the police. He never would have remembered that he had been the one to trap Alice here. It was just another reason to hate the woman who claimed to be his mother. She had managed to fuck this up without even being directly involved.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: Sorry this is so short! They won't all start getting this short, I promise. This one's just short because it's like the last bit of the last chapter. <strong>


	6. You're Not Alone

"_I think I'm in love with her."_

_Alice's head turned away from the box in front of her, looking at the boy behind her. Despite the years she spent telling herself that Tate would never love her the way she loved him, she never would have been prepared to hear him say he loved someone else. It felt like her heart had been ripped out, her chest had collapsed inwards. She was almost certain that if she were alive, she wouldn't be able to breathe. Tate, on the other hand, looked happier than she had seen him in a long time. It looked like he had a reason to be happy again, as upsetting as that thought was. _

_In a way, she was glad Tate had told her he had fallen in love with Violet. It still meant he thought of Alice as his best friend, but that didn't make the pain hurt any less. In a different way, she wished she had heard it from someone else. She didn't care who, whether it had been Nora, Moira, even Chad, as long as it hadn't have been Tate. Then she would have been able to pass it off as a rumor, not needing to truly believe it for a moment. But she had always known, hadn't she? From the moment Tate started talking to Violet, she had known this day would come, just simply seeing the way he looked at her. He had had girlfriends before and never looked at them that way, nor did he ever look at Alice that way._

_She forced herself to try and think rationally, as difficult as it was and turned back to the box in front of her. Her head was spinning. Her entire body felt like it hurt, even though she knew it was just her mind. She wouldn't let herself cry, at least not now. Tate didn't know he had done anything wrong. He didn't need to know either. She tore her mind away from her thoughts. Despite how bad it hurt, Alice knew she just wanted him to be happy. If Violet made him as happy as he said she did, she would have to be happy for them. Something inside of her, her gut feeling, knew this couldn't end well at all though. Violet was alive, Tate wasn't._

_She shook the negative thoughts from her mind, smiling as she hid the sadness like she had so often done before. "I'm happy for you." She said softly, taking in a breath as she tried to calm herself down enough for her liking. She pulled out a box, finding the game she had been looking for and turned back to Tate, a smile still painted on her face._

Alice was standing at the foot of the basement stairs, looking around nervously. It had been a month since the Harmon's died in the house and she knew that Violet and Tate had broken up. It wasn't hard to hear about news when they were all trapped in the same house. She frowned, remembering the look on Tate's face when he had confessed to being in love with the girl. If she knew her friend as well as she thought she did, he was down here somewhere, hiding away from the world in his sorrow.

She made her way through one of the doorways, calling out the boy's name quietly from time to time. It wasn't long before she found him sitting on the floor with his back against the wall. Her heart hurt immediately at the sight of the boy. She spoke his name quietly, tugging her sleeves over her hands and holding the fabric in her palms as he raised his head to look up at her. The look in his eyes told the girl that he was handling it just as bad as she had thought.  
>"I fucked up, Alice. I fucked up and lost the only good thing I had." His voice was hoarse and he looked down as he spoke, his fingers lacing together and untangling repeatedly. Alice sat down beside him, tucking her feet underneath before smoothing out the white fabric of her skirt. His words stung, but she pushed the feeling away like she had managed to perfect since Violet moved into the house.<br>"If she loved you as much as she claimed to have, she would have been able to forgive your mistakes…" The weak response was all the girl could manage, gently putting her hand on Tate's arm. He was silent for a minute and Alice couldn't imagine what he was thinking. She knew that he blamed himself for everything that had happened recently in the house, but she didn't. That was where her love for Tate was different from Violet's love for him. She forgave his mistakes where Violet seemed to just bring them up again and hurt the boy further. Hadn't she known from the start that the other girl would only hurt her friend?  
>"You should hate me like she does, Alice." Tate was looking up again, his sad eyes staring at her intently. "I'm a psychopath. I didn't deserve her and I don't deserve your friendship."<br>"You should know better than to even think I could hate you." She said quietly with a sigh, biting her lower lip. "I'm not going to leave you, Tate. No matter what you think, you will always have one friend in this house."  
>Alice leaned over, wrapping her arms around the boy's neck, hoping perhaps that the small contact would ease some of his fears. It always baffled her that he seemed to think he was alone all the time. He may not have a lot of people, but she knew for a fact that Nora was there for him, as well as her. She would always fight so that Tate wouldn't be alone, even if that meant arguing with him like she had probably a year ago. She felt Tate's arms go around her in response and closed her eyes. She would give anything to have the guts to tell how she really felt.<br>"Fuck, what am I going to do? I fucked everything up." His voice softened as they separated and he looked at the girl. The blonde had never seen her friend look this upset and broken up over something before and she realized just how much Violet Harmon meant to him.  
>"Give it time, love, I'm sure she will come around." Although she hated Violet at that moment for what the girl had done to her friend, Alice knew that if she happened to find Violet, she would at least attempt to talk to the teenager to give Tate another chance. It would ruin any sort of hope she had of possibly being more than friends with Tate, but she really didn't have much of a chance anyways. She would always be his best friend, there when no one else was, but nothing more. Violet had made Tate happy, and Tate deserved that happiness. If talking to the girl brought that happiness back, then she had to at least try and help. She could deal with her own pain another time, when she wasn't trying to help others. Perhaps one day she could even get over him.<p> 


	7. Breaking The Habit

Alice sat at the kitchen counter, a cup of coffee in her hands. She really didn't care for coffee, but since the new owners had moved in, she didn't want to move anything they may notice. Unlike the rest of the house, she tried not to disrupt their lives just because she was a ghost. The Harmon's would scare the new family away; they really didn't need help from her. As she took a sip of her coffee, she heard the familiar firecracker sound from the twins' noise makers, signalling that they were somewhere nearby. She took a long sip of her coffee as the noise got closer.  
>"Hey Alice"<br>"We were hoping to find you here."  
>The two red headed boys stood by the stool she was sitting on, looking at her with their usual smirks. Alice just put her cup down on the counter, tugging her sleeves over her hands. "Wow, Troy, Bryan, I haven't seen you two in a while. What are you two up to?"<br>"Scaring the shit out of the new family," Troy said. Alice just sighed, shaking her head.  
>"Have you met them yet?" Bryan's tone could hardly contain his curiosity.<br>"There's a boy around your age." Alice just smiled as the two young boys started laughing. She picked up her cup again, taking a final sip of the cooling coffee.  
>"I don't think he's my type." She said softly, hopping down from her stool and moving around the island to the sink. She heard one of the boys snicker something about Tate but decided to ignore it. "Was there something you needed me more?"<br>"Nora was looking for you. She's in the attic."

_Alice followed Tate down the stairs to the basement, wondering if his mom was going to get angry at them. Tate didn't seem to care, carrying his yellow truck without a care in the world. She followed hesitantly, her arms wrapped around her teddy bear that she brought everywhere. Tate had gone on and on about this woman in the basement that had saved his life that the little girl had to believe him eventually, and he was determined to prove the woman's existence. Even now he rambled on about the blonde woman. They had made it to the basement and were wandering through but Alice froze when she saw a pair of eyes staring at her from the shadows. She latched onto Tate's arms and almost instinctively he told whatever it was to "Go away".  
>"Oh, dear, what on earth are you doing down here again?" A blonde woman had appeared, strolling into the room with a concerned look drawn on her features. The recognition in Tate's own eyes told Alice that this was the one he had spent so long speaking of.<br>"You have to meet Alice! She's my best friend." The little boy grinned at the woman and Alice hid slightly behind him, nervous about the sudden meeting with someone who didn't seem like they should be there. She raised a hand, waving slightly before holding onto her teddy bear tightly. The woman moved closer, kneeling down in front of Tate.  
>"There's no need to be afraid, darling." The woman was clearly addressing Alice now, "Thaddeus won't bother you because I'm going to protect you. Both of you."<br>Alice blinked, surprised that the eyes she had seen had a name. She was also wary of this woman's kindness, but surely she wasn't a terrible person. Only a nice person would have saved Tate from being eaten, or whatever was going to happen. She smiled at the woman but didn't move from her spot behind Tate.  
>"You both should go back upstairs. I'm sure your mother must be worried about where you are." <em>

Alice made her way up the stairs, shivering at the memory of her first encounter of Thaddeus. It was almost needless to say that she wasn't afraid of him any longer, but the basement was still eerie and remembering how frightened she had been as a child still gave her chills.

_"You're the woman from the basement." Alice's voice came out much more confident than she felt. In all honesty, seeing the woman after so many years frightened her. Seeing the woman wandering through the house without caring of the people living in it seemed strange, but she had known all along that this mystery woman was a ghost.  
>"You can see me?" The woman stopped in her tracks, staring at the teenager with shock. "I don't see how that's possible."<br>"Am I not supposed to be able to?" Alice bit her lower lip nervously, feeling like there really was something wrong with her. Perhaps the kids at school were right, but if Tate ever knew she thought so, he would freak. She blinked, tugging the sleeves of her cardigan over her hands. "I'm sorry. I've been able to see you for a while…"  
>"How strange." The woman seemed to muse over the idea for a moment, wringing a handkerchief between her hands in what seemed to be either a habit or nervousness. "Don't apologize, child. It's hardly your fault. I'm Nora Montgomery."<br>As the woman held out her hand, Alice took it hesitantly, surprised at the name. She knew who Nora Montgomery was, everyone who knew about the house did. Was she really meeting the wife of the creator of the house?  
>"I – I'm Alice Fairbain."<br>"Yes, I remember you. The little girl that Tate could hide nothing from." _

A voice interrupted her thoughts and the blonde realized she had made it to the attic. Nora was looking up with a teddy bear in her hands. "I believe this is yours, dear."  
>Alice walked over, sitting on the floor next to Nora and taking the toy, looking at it with affection before turning her attention back to the woman.<br>"I was wondering about Tate. Is he any better?" Nora finally asked hesitantly. It was obvious that the boy was still keeping distance from everyone else in the house, but she never would have expected him to push even Nora away.  
>"He's… I suppose." Alice sighed, biting her lower lip. "He actually smiles every now and then, but not much else has changed." She shared a look with Nora, almost like an unspoken agreement that they both disliked Violet equally as much for how badly she had hurt Tate. She wrapped her arms around the teddy bear in her lap, something she hadn't done since she was a child. She was actually scared that her friend would never get over this, that he would never be able to be truly happy again all because of one teenage girl.<br>"He's lucky to have you, darling," Nora said softly after a moment, brushing her hand against Alice's cheek with an equal gentleness, "You've never given up on him and I don't think you ever will. That's what that boy needs more than anything; someone to be there for him no matter what."


	8. Violet Hill

After twelve years, Tate was mostly back to his old self, but there were still moments when Alice caught him staring off into space with a sad look in his eyes. She knew he was thinking about Violet, but she never mentioned it to him. She wanted him to be happy and discussing the girl he had lost would not do that. She wasn't sure she could bear hearing how much Tate loved Violet any longer either. A sigh escaped her lips as she put her chin on her arms that rested along the banister. She was staring down at the bottom of the main staircase, trying to fight off the uneasy feeling it gave her. Nearly thirty years and she still could hardly stand being where she had died.  
>"Alice?!" The Southern accent was far too distinguished not to recognize and the blonde turned, coming face to face with a woman she had only seen glimpses of since before her death. "Oh, tell me you're not stuck here too. I had no idea that you had died at the hands of the house." There was pity in the woman's voice that made the teenager uneasy about this meeting.<br>"I'm sorry Constance… I – I thought you knew…" Her voice was quiet as she tucked strands of hair behind her ear nervously.  
>"It's good to see you, no matter the circumstances." Constance smiled warmly, her hand touching the girl's cheek lovingly. "I feel much better leaving this house and knowing that Tate has someone looking after him in this house."<br>"Constance… Can I ask you a question?" Her voice shook slightly and she tried to prepare herself for whatever the answer might be.  
>"Anything, honey."<br>"What happened to my parents?" She tugged her sleeves over her hands, clutching the fabric in her palms nervously as she waited for a response. It was something she often tried to imagine, her parents going on without her. She always assumed they stayed in L.A., probably moved into a house they were more comfortable in. When she tried to visualize it, they always looked happier than she had ever seen them.  
>"They were devastated. I didn't hear much, but I had to talk to them once. The police had assumed you killed yourself, purposely tripped on the top stair or something, but your parents refused to hear it." Constance sighed, shaking her head. "They moved away, Florida, I think."<br>"Oh, wow." Alice murmured, looking down. She felt awful that her parents had been so upset and worse that the police had thought it was suicide. She bit her lower lip, blinking back tears.  
>"Enough about that now, baby. Are you okay here? With everything that had happened…"<br>"I – I'm fine. I've had Tate to look after so I don't really have time for my own problems." Alice said after a moment, smiling weakly at the woman, "I like it that way, though."  
>"I always thought Tate was lucky to have you. Shame he thought so highly of that Violet girl, though. You're much better for him and you would never hurt him like that." Alice blinked, surprised at the words she was hearing. It was one thing to hear a mother talk about the woman she wanted her son to be with but it was completely different to be that person. Constance smiled, tucking a strand of Alice's hair behind her ear. "I always hoped that once you both were old enough, you would be the girl to marry my son."<br>Alice blushed, looking down at her hands as she picked at a loose thread on her sweater. "I think some part of me always hoped that as well." She mumbled, practically able to feel the woman's beaming smile. Constance took the girl's hands before noticing the worn sweater.  
>"Good heavens, Alice, this sweater is falling apart. The next time I stop by, I'll bring by some new clothes for you, but I have to be off. Michael must be getting hungry by now."<p>

Since her meeting with Constance, Alice had moved to sit in the backyard. The thought of someone that had hoped she and Tate would end up together was strange. Everyone seemed to have been so happy when Tate found Violet that she had assumed no one gave her a second thought. She had merely just been his best friend, nothing more, nothing less. As she was lost in her thoughts, she heard someone call out and she looked up at the approaching teenage girl.  
>"You're Alice, aren't you? The girl that everyone keeps mentioning?"<br>"C-Can I help you with something?" She asked hesitantly after nodding her head. This girl was just as pretty up close as she had been from a distance and Alice felt a twinge of jealousy.  
>"I'm sure you know who I am if what everyone keeps saying is true. You're T - his best friend, aren't you?" Violet's voice was cold, but she couldn't help but notice the slight sadness the crept in as she nearly mentioned the boy's name. Alice simply nodded again, unsure of what Violet Harmon could possibly want from her. "How the hell do you do it?"<br>"I'm not sure what you mean, love." Despite her attempt at a strong appearance, her voice shook and she looked down nervously. She wasn't sure if she wanted to hear what this girl had to say about her friend.  
>"You know what he's done. You forgave him for everything he's done. That's bullshit. He's a psychopath." Violet's cold voice held anger now and Alice stood up immediately, staring at the girl with a sudden hatred. She didn't know what it was like to actually hate someone, but she could guess this is what it felt like.<br>"He's my best friend, Violet, and although you don't understand this house yet, I do. I know that if there were no influence of the house in his mind, Tate never would have done any of it. If this were a normal house, he would be a normal boy. Just because he made mistakes does not mean I am going to shut him out like everyone else seems to have done."  
>Violet laughed, a cold, unfriendly laugh that gave Alice chills, but she stood her ground, determined not to let her speak so horribly about her friend.<br>"Bullshit." Violet stared into the shorter blonde girl's eyes, "You're just as fucked up as he is, Alice. If you seriously think he's done nothing wrong, you need help. Jesus Christ, I may love him but at least I can see that."  
>"You don't know what love is." Alice said coldly, her voice barely more than a whisper. She clutched the end of her sleeves in her palms, crossing her arms over her chest before stepping around Violet without a second glance. She walked across the lawn quickly and stepped back inside, hoping the girl wasn't going to follow her. When there was no movement behind her, she stopped and sat on one of the stools in the kitchen, folding her arms on the counter and resting her forehead against them gently.<p> 


	9. Make A Move

"Come on."  
>"She's usually in here."<br>Alice heard the voices outside the hall before she heard the door open. She didn't bother looking away from the window as she watched a couple wandering by. She heard the twins laugh but it slowly faded away so she could only imagine that they had left the room.  
>"Hey," Alice turned at the voice, looking at the boy curiously. She recognized him, of course, as Mr. and Mrs. Morrison's son, but that was all she really knew about him.<br>"You're not supposed to be able to see me." She replied, partly to herself and partly to the boy in the room. He reminded her of Matt, the one boy she had dated when she was alive and it made her nervous to be in his presence.  
>"I can see all of you. My parents don't know." He had moved to sit down on the edge of the bed, looking at the petite girl with curiosity. "Those two kids said you know all about this place."<br>Alice blinked, shrugging her shoulders slightly at the statement. She made a mental note to speak to Troy and Bryan about trying to set her up with the new teenage boys that came to the house. "I'm… I'm Alice, but I imagine you already knew that." She said softly, turning in her chair to face the boy as she nervously pulled the sleeves of her cardigan over her hands.  
>"Connor Morrison." He said with a nod of his head. He grinned at the blonde. "It's great to finally meet you. I've seen you wandering around a couple times now but never got a chance to talk to you."<br>"I don't understand why you can see us…" She ran a hand through her hair, pushing her bangs away from her face for a moment before they fell back into place. She had been able to see Nora when she was alive, but no one else. It just didn't seem to make sense.  
>"What happened to all of you? Why are there so many people in this house?" Connor looked serious, but he didn't look like he was afraid to know there were ghosts in his house. It increased her uneasiness about the boy.<br>"We… we died here and now we can't really leave…" She sighed, realizing just how strange this was. It had been so long since she actually spoke to a living person, so long that she had been near a boy anywhere near her own age that she felt uncomfortable now.  
>"Hey, I hate to sound rude, but there's another girl around here that looks like she's around your age. She always looks miserable or pissed off. Think you could introduce me?"<br>Alice stared at him for a long moment before realizing who he meant. She wasn't surprised that someone seemed attracted to the other girl, but the fact that someone wanted _her_ to introduce them to Violet. She shook her head after a moment with a small smile.  
>"I'm afraid I can't. Violet and I aren't exactly close… If you go to the room at the end of the hall you may find her though. It used to be her room."<br>Connor just nodded, suddenly seeming excited about the thought and said a quick goodbye before running out of the room.

Tate had seen the guy coming out of the room Alice had unofficially claimed as her own. He recognized him from around the house, knowing he was the son of the couple who lived there but it didn't make sense. Alice avoided dealing with the living as much as possible, so why had she been spending time with this new boy? What also didn't make sense was why he seemed so irritated by the thought of Alice liking this guy. He cursed, making his way through the house and back to the basement before running into Nora.  
>"Is everything alright, darling? You seem distressed." The woman's voice was gentle but Tate took a moment to decide whether or not it was a good idea to tell her what was actually going on. He knew she would expect it to involve Violet somehow, but maybe she would be happy to know that it really had nothing to do with the other girl.<br>"Alice has a new friend." He muttered, sinking down in the white rocking chair he could so often be found in. "I don't know what it is but I just hate the thought of her hanging out with him."  
>"Him? Alice is friends with another boy?" Nora studied the boy's face for a moment before she smiled, shaking her head. "You're jealous of him, dear, because you want to be more than just friends with Alice."<br>"No way, no, Alice is my best friend." Tate responded immediately, shaking his head vigorously. The more he thought about it, the more it did seem to make sense, though, and it terrified him. Even if he did like her more than friends, she probably wouldn't even consider it. They'd be friends for too long to risk it over trying something new.  
>"You're in love with her. I promise if you just take a chance, it could make a world of difference." Nora lifted her hand to Tate's face, touching his cheek in an affectionate manner. "Give love another chance, darling, it's worth it when you find the right person."<p>

Tate sat there for a moment after Nora wandered off, most likely to find Charles or one of the other ghosts, and thought about what the woman had said. He was in love with his best friend? How hadn't he noticed after all these years? If he had been jealous of Alice's previous boyfriend, then he must have had feelings for her even then. Was he ready to move on from Violet? He had said he would wait forever, but it was so difficult to wait, knowing that she would never forgive him. He groaned, putting his head in his hands as he tried to sort out his thoughts. It terrified him to put his entire friendship on the line for a chance, but Nora seemed to know more about the situation than she led on to. She wouldn't have told him to take a chance if she thought Alice had no interest in it. What the hell would sweet, innocent Alice see in him though?


	10. All I Wanted

Alice sat, curled up in an armchair that had been pulled up beside the fireplace. It had been weeks since she last saw Connor, or Violet for that matter. Not that she was bothered by it, she just had the worst feeling things would end badly for the Morrison family, similar to what happened with the Harmon's. She had noticed a distance between her and Tate suddenly though, that did bother her. She was afraid that he had seen Violet with the new boy and it had taken away all the progress he had made in trying to be happy with her. A sigh escaped her lips as she stared at the flame that licked the inside of the fireplace.

"Alice, hey, can I talk to you for a minute?"  
>The girl turned, looking at Tate who was standing at the door. She was surprised at how nervous he seemed about what she could only guess would be a moderately normal conversation. Usually, though, he didn't ask to talk, he just sat down and got out whatever was on his mind. She unwrapped one of her arms from around herself, gesturing for him to come sit with her.<br>"Is something the matter, dear?"  
>Tate sat on the sofa off to the side of the armchair, facing the fire more directly. He couldn't help thinking that the way the light from the flame hit his best friend that she looked stunning and it only added to the thoughts he'd had since his conversation with Nora. He knew some part of him would always love Violet Harmon, but this other part he had recently discovered seemed to overpower that. Alice had been the one to tell him that perhaps he needed to try to move on from his ex-girlfriend after all.<br>"No, I've just… There's something I need to tell you but I have no idea how to." He looked at his friend, suddenly nervous. This was the girl, the one person; he used to be able to talk to about nearly anything but now he could hardly voice how he felt. "You're so amazing, Alice. There's no one in the entire world that could ever replace you and I wouldn't want anyone to. I'm a fucking idiot for not realizing this earlier, but I think I'm in love with you."  
>Alice had turned around in her seat fully, now facing the boy fully with wide eyes that clearly expressed her shock. She had given up the chance of this ever happening, and now it was. He wasn't over Violet, she knew that, but she wanted to believe that he actually could have more feelings for her than merely friendship. She blinked, trying to form some sort of thoughts that actually made sense.<br>"Tate, you… what about Violet?" Her voice came out quieter than she intended and she mentally lectured herself for not at least acting stronger. She was looking at him, her eyes full of nervousness and uncertainty. She was afraid to believe his words, no matter how badly she wanted to, because she didn't think she would be able to stand having him leave her for Violet because she had forgiven her.  
>"She's not going to forgive me. I've spent so many goddamn years waiting for her that I never realized what it was that actually kept me going." His tone was soft, understanding why Alice was so cautious. He knew how hard she tried to avoid letting people hurt her and he knew that this was a huge risk to their friendship, but Nora had been right. He just had to give it a chance. "You're the only reason I even try to keep going. It's always been you, Alice, and I never understood why I care about what you think of me more than anyone else before. All I've ever wanted to do since that moment we met when we were kids was to protect you and make you happy." He paused, looking at the petite girl, her eyes filled with tears, and reached out, grabbing her hand. "I love you, Alice."<br>Alice took a moment, staring at Tate, sitting on the sofa, and found it difficult to breathe. She had wanted this to happen for so long that it hardly felt at all real now that it was happening. She was barely aware of the hand that was holding hers gently, but she squeezed in response. It was something that clarified that this was indeed happening. He was looking at her with mixed emotions. He seemed relieved to have said it, but at the same time he still kept the nervous look he had before.  
>"This is real." She exhaled softly, blinking. "Wow, Tate… I – I can't remember a time when I didn't love you…" Her voice was quieter than she had intended and was surprised that the boy had even heard her but his face seemed to light up at Alice's words.<p>

One minute she was sitting on the arm chair and the next she was on her feet with Tate's arms wrapped around her. She stood on her toes, wrapping her arms around his neck. Despite the couple inches Alice had gained by rising to her toes, Tate still had to lean down to kiss her but it didn't matter. The overall situation was far from perfect, but to Alice, it was the closest thing to perfect she had ever experienced. _This is what it's like to love and be loved._ She felt his hands on her waist move to her back, his fingers tangling in her hair.

Tate pulled away first, grinning down at the blonde. Alice giggled, letting herself fall back onto her feet as she rested her cheek against his chest gently. He untangled his hands from her hair before stepping back, taking her hand and pulling her onto the sofa with him.  
>"Is my sweater comfy?" He teased, actually noticing what the girl was wearing for the first time in a long time. He put his arm around her shoulder, chuckling as Alice's face turned pink. She put her head on his shoulder, a smile painted on her lips.<br>"I – I didn't think you would notice…" She mumbled, tugging the sleeves over her hands. She didn't see Tate's smile but she felt his head against hers and heard him chuckle again. Although they hadn't been her favourite, she remembered watching romance movies over the years. They were always cliché, but she understood now what they were talking about. The butterflies in her stomach, how just being with one person seemed to make the rest of the world disappear.  
>"It looks better on you."<p> 


End file.
